Maximum 9 11
by MidnightStarsXx
Summary: It's 20 years later. It was supposed to be just another ordinary day at work in the World Trade Center and Max was already a bit nervous for her meeting with Fang. Looks like now, she's going to save some lives again.


**Author's Note: This is a quick 9/11 story I wrote this morning after watching a 9/11 special on TV. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Maximum Ride characters. James Patterson does.**

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><p>It was just like another ordinary day at work for Maximum Ride. It was 20 years later. Max knew that there was only 3 more months until she were to meet with Fang again for the first time since she was 15. Now, she was 35. Her and the rest of the Flock never got their expiration date. Max got a job in New York, working as a secretary in one of the Twin Towers.<p>

Her thoughts were set on doing her boring job while at the same time, she was thinking about her meeting with Fang. She was having a very nice conversation with her friend, Jasmine, when the plane hit.

The shock of the hit shook the building. Max quickly grabbed on to her desk to keep her balance while others began to scream in alarm. Max's senses heightened as the adrenaline rushed through her. She quickly walked out form her desk and began to look around. Outside her window, she saw smoke, debris and... Max stepped back, a screaming building in her throat when she saw a man fly past her window.

He does't have wings like Max does, so he can't _fly_.

Her eye widened as she realized what was going to happen. The plane crashing into the building, cased a fire which will have the the building collapse. She looked down from the window and suddenly completely regretted wanting to work up on the 87th floor. Her wings began to ache, something that always warned Max that something bad was going to happen soon.

She had to do something. Max knew she had to do something! She was supposed to save the freaking world! Max quickly ran towards her desk away, kicking off her stupid heels in the process and grabbed her cell phone and made a call home.

"H-hey guys, It's Max. Listen, there was a just a plane that crashed into my building here. I have a feeling something bad is going to happen. I just know it. I'm going to do my best to get home, alright guys? Don't worry about me. Don't watch the news, don't go outside, just please stay at home and wait for me." Max's throat began to tighten, because with this, there was a great chance that she wouldn't make it out alive. "If something happens to me, let Fang know, alright?" Max looked up when the door opened and two men in hard hats began to lead everyone out of the room. Shouts were sounding everywhere and the sound of fire from a few floors above Max were starting to get her a headache. "Two men just got here. Again, don't worry about me. I'm going to do the best I can to help these people make it out. I love you guys, remember that. Always. Bye." Max hung up the phone and stuck it in her pocket and began to make her way out of the room.

She stopped at the first flight of stairs and looked down at everyone walking down the stairs. She turned to the two men and said firmly, "I'm not going anywhere. I'm helping you two get these people out."

One of them shook his head and said, "Listen ma'am, you need to get out of this building quickly! This place is going to collapse and we have no time."

"Get out as fast as you can."

Max glared at them before quickly making her way up the flight of stairs to the next floor up, the shouts of the men behind her, telling her to go down with the rest but she ignored them all. Using her heightened hearing, she heard the voices of more people upstairs.

"There's people up here and the fire is spreading quickly! Stop standing there and come help me!" Max shouted back down to the two. They looked at each other before following Max up the stairs.

Max reached the next floor and jogged to the first door she heard voices from. She opened the door and sighs of relief and surprise came. "Come on, everyone. We need to get out of here quickly!" Max and the two men got everyone out. Once they watched the group walk down the stairs before looking at each other. They all agreed to continue up another flight of stairs.

They were now on the 89th floor. 4 floors away from the crash sight. The cleared the next floor and that's when Max wanted both the men, Frank and Pablo, to go down with them and that she'd continue going up to search for survivors. They continued to argue with her until she agreed to let them go up with her again.

Frank de Martini and Pablo Ortiz were very surprised that this women, in a pencil skirt and a white blouse and barefoot, was trying to tell them to leave her so she could save the others and their lives. They were amazed by the determination in this women and the sight of her climbing the stairs, almost two at a time to get to the next floor.

They found her amazing.

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><p>Back at home, Fang had decided to visit early. Everyone was completely shocked and there were many tears and happy smiles. Fang was welcomes back with open arms and was amazed at the sight of everyone all grown up. Iggy and Ella even had a 10 year old son named Gabriel who did have wings.<p>

When they were all sitting in the living room, was when Angel came running into the room, tears running down her face.

"What happened Angel?" Gazzy asked, as he shot up from the couch to comfort his sister. Angel shook her head and pointed to the phone. The red blinking light indicated that there was a voice mail.

Nudge, with a worried expression, pressed the button on the machine and Max's panting voice filled the room. "H-hey guys, It's Max." Fang stiffened at the sound of her voice. It had been so long... "Listen, there was a just a plane that crashed into my building here. I have a feeling something bad is going to happen. I just know it. I'm going to do my best to get home, alright guys?" Angel had already began sobbing and silent tears were running down Nudge and Ella's face. Iggy had his head in his hands. Fang: He was frozen. Eyes wide in shock and worry and his heart pounded in his chest painfully.

"Don't worry about me. Don't watch the news, don't go outside, just please stay at home and wait for me. If something happens to me, let Fang know, alright?" There were noise in the background of voices shouting. "Two men just got here. Again, don't worry about me. I'm going to do the best I can to help these people make it out. I love you guys, remember that. Always. Bye." The voicemail cut off.

Ella had went against Max's orders and turned on the news, only to gasp when she caught sight of the building. A giant hole the size of a plane in the World Trade Center with dark, black smoke billowing out. The Flock plus Ella and Gabriel could see the flames licking at the floors.

"That's just like Max." Nudge let out a bitter laugh. "To tell us not to worry when she's most likely climbing up towards the fire instead of going down."

Gazzy was quietly whispering what the building looked like.

Angel yelled out when the news reporter suddenly yelped then began yelling that the south building was collapsing. They shows a picture of the news crew running while catching glimpses of the building collapsing and a giant debris cloud before the video went black.

"Oh my God! MAX!" Angel cried out, fat tears falling down her face.

"Oh God." Ella said. "Wait, doesn't She work in the North building?"

Fang, sighed a bit in relief but was completely worried that her building would collapse as well...

He couldn't bare to think of the love of his life dying in such a catastrophe.

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><p>Max was coughing and it was like her lungs were on fire. They had cleared out as many floors as they could and now Pablo, Frank and Max were making their way back down to everyone else. All three of them had burning eyes and were coughing. Max had ripped the side of her skirt, feeling she'd have more room to move her legs that way. She would have just ripped off her whole skirt but felt it wouldn't help with all the debris everywhere.<p>

They had made it to the rest of the group and made their way down another flight of stairs. They had to go through so much to go through. That's when they got stuck on the 11th floor.

They finally found a way out. Max, Frank and Pablo finally got everyone else out. All 80 or more people. There were screams outside and a firemen yelled out, "The building is going to collapse!"

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><p>The new women continued to show different videos of the last building standing until they found a camera from a news station near by who had a view of the last building.<p>

Everyone was crying, even Fang though his face was completely emotionless. Who knew this would happen when he decided to come home. What would have happened if he had come home earlier? What if he had never left? He doesn't know but he knows that maybe there was a chance to prevent something from happening.

They all silents ignored the sound of the newswomen talking and watched as the building continued to burn.

Then Gazzy saw the building move and cried out, "MAX!" like as if she could hear his heart-wrenching cry through the television. Everyone watched in shock, watched with hearts pounding and bodies shaking as the last tower fell to the ground in a shower of debris and a giant dust cloud.

It _collapsed_. 1,152 people **died**. The Flock was praying that Max wasn't one of them.

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><p>Weeks passed after the catastrophe and the news reported that two men, Frank de Martini and Pablo Ortiz were two men who had died saving so many lives. Though a survivor said there was a women with them who helped. The Flock had snapped their heads towards the TV when they heard that.<p>

"She was like my best friend. Her name was Max Ride. She..." The women, named Jasmine Gives, gave a small laugh before continuing. "We worked together and she was always like my hero. That day we... she was a real hero. She helped save all our lives and when I went down those flight of stairs and looked up, hoping to see Max following, I caught her going up instead with Frank and Pablo."

The women began crying and said she couldn't talk about it anymore. She heard about the fate of her friend and co-worker.

"That was Max." Ella whispered as she held her son to her. Gabriel was crying silently. He loved Max. She's the one who taught him how to fly and who did so much for him.

The news reporter came back onto the screen and announced, "The bodies of Frank de Martini and Pablo Ortiz were never found. As for Maximum Ride, her body was found in the lobby of the building," Fang abruptly stood up and began making his way out of the room. "but her body went missing shortly thereafter." That's when Fang paused and so did everyone else in the room.

Max's body went _missing_?

"If anyone has any information, please call-"

The man's voice was suddenly cut off by the front door opening and a dirty blonde women walking in dressed in a pair of jeans, running shoes and a regular short sleeve shirt. She gave the shocked room a sheepish smile before saying, "H-hey guys. What did I miss?" and scratching the back of her neck.

It was Max.

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><p>Max and Fang were walking outside in the trail of the near by woods. Max had explained earlier that she had blacked out after the building collapsed and when she woke up, she was laying in a morgue. She quickly escaped and went to a friend's house to heal. She didn't mean to worry anyone but she was too weak and broken to do anything else but eat, sleep and use the bathroom. She couldn't even talk.<p>

_"Tomorrow,"_ She had announced. _"I'm going to announce that I'm alive and not dead."_ Max didn't want people to think she was dead. Especially the Jasmine women who had worked with her.

Now, Max and Fang walked in silence in the middle of the night, side by side.

"So you came... You didn't wait for me." Max whispered, breaking the silence.

Fang nodded. "I just couldn't wait any longer."

Max turned to him and smiled. He had grown so much. He looked so much more mature despite the fact that he still wore all black and had the same hairstyle. He was more built. The boyish look that was once in his face had faded into one of a full grown man. Max could even see his recently cut beard growing out again. That was a funny thought. Fang with a beard.

"I missed you," Max whispered, standing a bit closer to Fang.

"I missed you too." He said just as quietly while intertwining their hands together and leaning his forehead against hers. What sucks is that Fang is still taller than Max even if she's 5'9".

There was a short silence for a while before both of their lips connected. Max and Fang both felt whole again as the familiar warmth spread through both their bodies.

Max was alive. Fang was back. Nothing could separate them now. Or _ever again_.

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><p><strong>Well, I hope you enjoyed that! It's not my best but it's what I could do at 11 in the morning with an empty stomach before my younger step-brother's baseball game in an hour =]<strong>

**Yes, Frank and Pablo are real. Yes, both Frank and Pablo were lost in the collapse... R.I.P. **

**Please enjoy and review! ✝ **


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